High-miles Miata

Lots of folks know about Irv Gordon and his 2.5-plus-million-mile Volvo P1800S, which is solidly holding its place in the record books as the highest mileage passenger car on Earth.

If any car has a shot at breaking that record, it’s probably a Mazda Miata, a sports car that, like the Volvo, is both fun to drive and nearly unbreakable. The enthusiasts at www.miata.net are trying to find the highest-mileage Miata — so far, they know of one car with 436,000 miles that was used on a 100-mile daily commute for several years, and have a photo of another odometer showing 928,000, although they have their doubts about the authenticity of that one.

If you own or know of a Miata with more than 450,000 miles on the clock, send Miata.net an e-mail, with corroborating photo attached.

(This post originally appeared in the July 19, 2007, issue of the Hemmings eWeekly Newsletter.)